


Silence

by heartsflush



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Established Relationship, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Abuse, M/M, Panic Attacks, Revenge, sazed's a dick, some of these are a bit of a stretch but i wanna make sure i'm covering all the bases, taako faints so there's that
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-06
Updated: 2017-06-06
Packaged: 2018-11-09 14:58:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,903
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11106960
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/heartsflush/pseuds/heartsflush
Summary: There are a couple different kinds of silences. Taako's (un)fortunate enough to experience them all in one night.





	Silence

**Author's Note:**

> alternate summary: "how many of casey's insecurities can they project onto taako in less than 2000 words"
> 
> pretty much, i wanted to write a mostly nonviolent sazed fic. taako's got a great and hella intimidating entourage, and they help him overcome his past. bonus taakitz bc hell yeah
> 
> mature rating is mostly for the abuse-related content
> 
> also this is loosely canon-divergent bc idk how to factor lup into this and i wanted taako to have the umbra staff lmao

The city of Neverwinter bustled with activity, even as the hours grew late. The streetlamps illuminated the people from all walks of life stepping in and out of rhythm with each other, and the reflection of light against the soft white snow bathed the city in a pale glow. It was the perfect scene to watch from a bar window while chatting idly with a handsome date, and that’s exactly what Taako found himself doing; an occasional glance at Kravitz revealed that he was also fascinated by the winter scene, and he blushed when Taako winked at him, eliciting a giggle from the elf.

After everything to do with saving the world(s) had dwindled down to a standstill, the Tres Horny Boys unanimously decided it was time for some planet-side down time. As Merle and Magnus had rushed into the bar, Taako spotted Kravitz taking care of a job a few paces away and dragged him away for drinks and company. He’d protested at first, but succumbed after seeing that there was no way to change Taako’s mind.

They’d been at this booth for a while now, alternating between staring out the window and at each other, and it was only when Merle loudly cast (or at least tried to cast) a Zone of Truth that they decided it was time to leave. Taako pulled on his jacket as Kravitz adjusted his long, black cloak, and they left the doors as Magnus profusely apologized to the bartender and plopped a sack of gold coins on the counter.

The activity on the street had significantly slowed, and as the four walked out into the road, the silence that fell upon them was not uncomfortable, but peaceful. It was the kind of silence Taako had grown to appreciate; he didn’t have to consider an attack or an escape route, and he enjoyed the presence around him rather than choking on it.

Of course, like most things in Taako’s life, that just _had_ to come to a sudden, screeching halt.

Taako had looked in front of him to see if Merle was getting too far ahead when he saw the figure in the streetlamp. Tall. Messy hair. Impossibly wide. Eyes that flickered with surprise, and then malice.

_Fuck._

Taako’s heart jumped into his throat and he shrank back, his breath hitching as Sazed advanced slowly. Kravitz gave him a concerned look, but Taako couldn’t return it, too focused on the man now a mere three or four feet away from him.

“Fancy meeting you here,” Sazed drawled, his voice even more gravely since they’d parted. Taako couldn’t bring himself to answer.

But when Magnus caught up behind them, and Merle turned to him with concern, and Kravitz gripped his arm a little tighter, a surge of something inexplicable coursed through Taako.

He decided in that moment that he was done being afraid.

Taako stood up a little straighter and placed a hand on the Umbra Staff at his side. “Sazed,” he replied, with all the venom he could muster. Unsurprisingly, not a lot, since he was still getting over the initial wave of panic, but he did his best. “How lovely to see you again. How long has it been, seven years? Eight?”

Behind him, Taako could feel Magnus tense up. He’d told him and Merle about that whole incident about two months ago, and Kravitz a little after that. He never expected it to come up so soon.

“Something like that,” Sazed answered. He motioned to take a step forward, but stopped when Merle placed himself between the two. Sazed glanced down at the dwarf, then looked back at Taako with a glare. “Honestly, I’m surprised you have friends at this point. I was the only person who could ever stand you."

Taako's breath hitched, but he perished that thought from his head. The arm currently clutching his was proof enough that Sazed was wrong.

"D’you think they’d take well to learning what a terrible person you are?” Sazed continued, shifting his gaze to Magnus. "It's a bit of a shocker learning that your friend's a wanted murderer."

Taako felt Magnus stop himself from rushing in for once, and he was grateful.

“Or do they already know?” Sazed continued, his glare growing. “Are they just waiting until it’s an opportune time to leave you in the dust?”

“Like you did?” Taako shot back, a glare of his own forming on his features. “People in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones, Sazed.” He gripped the Umbra Staff tighter in one hand.

Sazed scoffed and crossed his arms. “Whatever. At least I don’t have the guilt of forty people’s deaths hanging over me.”

Just like that, Taako’s signature smirk worked its way onto his face. “You always were a terrible liar, Sazed.”

Sazed looked confused, his arms dropping to his sides. “What--”

“You remember what I _thought_ I did, Sazed?” Taako interrupted. “You remember the word I screamed at you, hoping that somehow, if I yelled loud enough, those forty people would somehow come back to life?”

An uncomfortable, tense silence draped itself into the scene before Taako tacked on an “I’m waiting” and gestured at Sazed with the Umbra Staff.

Sazed glowered. “Nightshade--”

“Exactly,” Taako cut in. “I thought that I’d been careless. I thought I was too blinded by the stage lights to notice that I forgot to transmute an ingredient correctly. And you know what? Maybe I was a little too negligent. Because I sure as hell didn’t consider all the possible ways that show could’ve gone wrong, huh?”

Sazed’s look of confusion returned as Taako turned to Kravitz. “Love, are you familiar with the forty deaths in Glamour Springs a few years back? Would that have intersected with your line of work?”

“Certainly,” Kravitz replied, his work accent now giving a threatening tone to his words. The look in his eyes gave Taako the certainty he needed to press forward.

“Did you do an official investigation of how they died?” Taako continued.

Kravitz nodded. “The one common thread between all of the victims was shockingly high levels of _arsenic._ ” Kravitz punctuated his final word with a glance right into Sazed’s now-terrified eyes as his skin peeled away, leaving the white bones of his skeletal form reflecting the streetlight brightly.

“My, my,” Taako mused. “Now, Merle. Correct me if I’m wrong, you’re far better with plants than I am, but last I checked, the levels of arsenic in nightshade are, well, nonexistent, correct?”

Merle crossed his arms and nodded. “That’s entirely correct.” As he spoke, little nightshade flowers grew out of his soulwood arm, and Taako thanked Pan that this had the divine seal of approval, somehow. “In fact,” Merle continued, “the amount of nightshade you’d need to have a similar effect to arsenic is far greater than the amount of elderberries you had in your recipe.”

That wasn’t entirely true, but the bluff did the job. Merle must have rolled pretty high.

“Hmmm,” Taako continued, drawing out the scene for as long as he could. “How _mysterious_. Wasn’t it your job to set up my ingredients beforehand, Sazed? Wasn’t it your job to count out the berries so that the number was  _exactly_ right?” Taako took a step forward, clenching the Umbra Staff tightly. “How could you be so careless?”

“I was--” Sazed began, only to be cut off by Taako once more.

“Oh, and Magnus,” Taako continued, “you’re familiar with the law. Isn’t it true that the punishment for mass homicide in Faerun is death by beheading?”

Magnus said “Last I checked, yes,” and gripped Railsplitter, glowering at Sazed with all the force he could muster. Which, considering that Magnus was _far_ taller than Sazed and a hell of a lot more muscley, was a lot.

Taako smiled and glanced back at Sazed. “Gotcha.”

“Alright, fine, you’ve got me!” Sazed cried, stumbling backward and putting his hands up. “What the hell do you want?”

In an instant, the Umbra Staff was at Sazed’s throat, and Taako’s smile had disappeared.

“Run. Far away. I don’t _ever_ want to see your face again,” Taako snarled. “And if I do, there’s going to be some serious hell to pay. Got it?”

Taako assumed he did, since Sazed took off running the moment he’d finished his sentence.

Magnus exhaled gently from behind him. “Taako, that was badass.”

“Thanks,” Taako replied, spinning around to face him. “I think I’m going to faint now.” Right on cue, he fell over into Kravitz’s arms and blacked out.

 

When Taako woke up, he was in an unfamiliar bed. Not the first time it had happened, and probably not the last, but his reaction was still the same: charge up a Magic Missile and head for the door.

He stopped himself when he saw Kravitz sitting on the edge of the bed. He’d returned to his more human-looking form and was tying back his long black dreads carefully when he noticed Taako wake up. The gentle, relieved smile that made its way onto his face was a welcome sight as Taako sat up.

“How are you feeling?” Kravitz asked, carefully taking Taako’s hand.

Taako shrugged. “For someone who just confronted the person who’d plagued his nightmares for eight years, pretty okay? I guess?”

Kravitz laughed. It was a soft, melodic chuckle that sent waves of comfort down Taako’s spine. “Merle and Magnus are in the next room over. They’re concerned,”

_‘When are they not?’_ Taako thought to himself.

“but they decided it was best to let you rest for now.”

The peaceful silence from the beginning of the evening returned for a moment before Kravitz looked at Taako and asked, “Do you want to talk about it?”

Taako thought for a moment, then squeezed Kravitz’s icy hand. “I don’t think there’s ever gonna be an opportune time, so why not.”

He swung his legs over the side of the bed and sighed before the dam broke. Every guilty thought he’d ever had spilled out of his mouth, and every angry cry he’d suppressed and all the tears he’d held back came with them. All the while, Kravitz sat and listened, occasionally motioning to ask if it was okay to put an arm around his shoulder or move a little bit closer.

After he was done, after it had all left him, there was nothing left in the room but silence. Not peaceful, but not uncomfortable, either. Simply there, hanging over them like a blanket of snow.

Then, Kravitz gently squeezed Taako’s shoulders. Taako looked up at him, and their eyes met as Kravitz spoke, softly and gently.

“I’m proud of you.”

Taako reached up to wipe an idle tear from his eye. “What?”

“I’m proud of you,” Kravitz repeated. “He did so much to you on top of your already difficult life, and you stood up to him and scared him off. You’ve grown, Taako, and I am so immensely proud to be with you.”

As he finished his sentence, he pressed a kiss to Taako’s forehead, and Taako could feel the waterworks coming on again.

“Babe,” Taako whispered, clutching Kravitz’s hand where it was placed on his shoulder. “That’s so gay.”

Kravitz rolled his eyes and laughed softly. He made eye contact, silently asking permission, and when Taako gave it, he pressed his lips onto Taako’s gently.

They were enveloped by sweet silence after that; no more words were necessary.

**Author's Note:**

> EDIT: i wanted to say a quick thank you for all the positive feedback this fic has gotten! like i said in the beginning there's a lot of me in taako in this fic and it's really a huge relief knowing that people like this. thank you <3 <3 <3


End file.
